A Miscellany 366
The 80% Solution

by: Donald R Barbera

Note from JT: Mr. Barbera has offered an electronic (pdf) copy of his book for review purposes. If anyone is interested in writing a review for this website, please contact me, and I'll arrange for you to get the book.

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Black and Not Baptist* Author Takes Issue
with American Christianity

The 80% Solution: Christians Doing the Right Thing

The United States is a divided country and much of that division comes from the mouths of the Evangelical Right and their political surrogates in the Republican Party. Same sex marriage and abortion are just two of a laundry list of subjects Right Wing Christianity claims disrupts morality in America.

Those placing blame forget that whenever pointing fingers, invariably, three fingers target the pointer. With that in mind, the author believes just the opposite and says so in the book’s title "Christians Doing the Right Thing," which in this case is Christians failing to act like Christians.

"The 80% Solution," will make that clear. For instance, there is much noise from the Christian Right about abortion, but never mention that 65% of those receiving abortions are Christian and the majority is Protestant. President Obama's recent endorsement of gay marriage brought Conservative Christians out of the woodwork to denounce same sex marriage. However, none of them mentions that evangelical Christians are the most divorced group in the United States followed by their born-again brethren.

Despite name calling by Right Wing Evangelical Christians and the "Family Values" of the party they control, "The 80% Solution" makes it clear that those that shout the loudest often have the most to hide. Things thought settled long ago, like racism, is as virulent as it was when Freedom Riders rode buses to the Deep South. Leading the charge are Right Wing Evangelical Christians who want to establish a theocracy.

The new book addresses these "oversights" and more. Illegitimate births, unwed mothers, teen pregnancy, the failure of abstinence only sex education, clergy misconduct, sexual crimes, divorce, gambling are just a few categories covered. Each chapter covers a topic brought up by the Evangelical Right and compares stated belief against documented behavior.

The entire point of "The 80% Solution" is to bring attention to the difference between what is said and what is done. As the reader will see—talk is cheap. When Christians start acting like Christians is when the United States will fulfill its potential.